


You Can Trust Me

by LabRatsWhore



Series: The Broken Ankle Made Me Do It [3]
Category: Girl Meets World, Lab Rats (TV 2012)
Genre: Bre writes sad fics, Car Accidents, F/M, Headcannon Disabled Character, Hospitals, Matter of Life and Death, Only Minor Lab Rats, Past Character Death, Past Child Abuse, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Super angsty, bre writes shit
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-09-01
Updated: 2017-03-28
Packaged: 2018-08-12 07:35:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 6,955
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7926124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LabRatsWhore/pseuds/LabRatsWhore
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(Spin-Off of 'The Middle of Bumfuck Nowhere', because that is supposed to be a fun little ficlet so I'm obligated not to put the angst into that.)</p><p>One car accident changed everything for Josh Matthews. He wasn't even majorly injured, but his girlfriend of nearly 10 months was, and she's already been through so much before she met him, and still after with the lingering PTSD. Cory and Shawn knew that letting the kids go on a road trip was a bad idea, even with Topanga and Katy's idea of Josh and Breana chaperoning them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. When Everything Goes To Hell

**Author's Note:**

  * For [James_Stryker](https://archiveofourown.org/users/James_Stryker/gifts).



> So I got the idea for this while writing 'The Middle of Bumfuck Nowhere' and I knew I couldn't do this in that one.
> 
> It's probably best that Ski Lodge went differently in this timeline.
> 
> And Headcannon Disabled Character is for both my OC and Farkle, because while Farkle does not have Asperger's Syndrome, he could still be on the Autism Spectrum, like me, I'm on the Autism Spectrum but high functioning. Even though I, and other people don't consider ourselves disabled, it's just for the tag.
> 
> Also, side note, Lee Norris aka Stuart Minkus is a really hot peice of ass.

Lucas and Zay both got their driver's licenses right after they turned 17 because they had been driving on the farm since they were old enough to walk, well at least 'helping' their fathers steer the tractor or the truck. So Naturally they wanted to go on a road trip over Spring Break. However, Topanga had a huge case she was working on, Shawn and Katy were going on their honeymoon since they couldn't go right after they got married, Corey had to go see his parents in Philadelphia, Lucas' mom was busy working since she was a nurse, and Zay's parents  weren't allowed to get off work by their employer.

So naturally,  Josh volunteered to be their chaperone. Cory didn't want Riley alone with boys, even Farkle, but Topanga agreed as long as Josh's girlfriend, Breana, would come along to help chaperone the kids. Stuart was ok with it since he trusted the Matthews (and having to go on a business trip while sorting out divorce papers), and Katy knew that if she didn't agree that Maya would be home alone with Riley.  She blackmailed Shawn into getting him to agree.

Breana had been dating Josh for at least a few months since he met her while volunteering at a soup kitchen over the summer. She ran away and was having trouble finding a job, so he offered her one at the family camping store. She didn't want to accept it, but he insisted, telling her "A pretty girl like you shouldn't be out on the streets." He got to know her, learning that she had ran away from home after everything that had happened with her family. She was a tiny woman, she was only three inches shorter than him but she was so skinny. Josh took every opportunity he could to feed her when he wasn't away at NYU. He was going to get an apartment next year so she could stay with him.

It took a lot of arguing to agree on a destination, but they finally agreed on Santa Cruz, California. Farkle and Smackle wanted to go hiking, Riley and Lucas wanted to go see horses, and Maya and Zay wanted to go the beach. Maya jokingly suggested getting fake IDs and sneaking into a bar. Of course she said that when the only 'adults' around were Breana and Josh. Josh had glared at her and Riley had slapped her hand over her mouth. Breana just rolled her eyes, holding Josh's hand all lovey-dovey.

"So you're the famous Breana." Zay flirted with her, grinning. Josh glared at Zay while Breana shifted on the balls of her feet. Zay held his hands up in defense while he backed away from Josh. "I apologize for him in advance. He doesn't know when to keep his big mouth shut." Lucas told Josh. "Hey!" Zay shouted. "Thank you for stating the obvious, Huckleberry." Maya grinned at Lucas. Riley chuckled, holding Farkle's hand. "So when are we leaving?" Someone finally thought to ask. It was Smackle, after she had finished smacking Zay's shoulder.

Lucas and Zay looked at each other. "We hadn't though about that." Maya rolled her eyes. "Of course you hadn't." She playfully shoved Lucas. "Well it's a one day and nineteen hour drive, so we should leave either Friday night after school or early Saturday morning." Breana told the six younger teenagers. "Ewww morning!" Maya whined. "I'm not waking up early on a Saturday." Zay said. Farkle and Smackle rolled their eyes at the same time. "Then we're leaving Friday night." Breana decided for them. "Don't I get a say in this?" Josh asked. "Nope." Breana teased him.  Josh rolled his eyes, pulling her in for a kiss. "Uncle Boing, that's gross!" Maya whined. Lucas kissed Maya in retaliation.

"Uncle Boing?" Breana raised an eyebrow at Josh. Josh rolled his eyes, embarrassed. "She used to have a crush on me before she admitted that she liked Huckleberry here." He told Breana, running his hands through her long brown hair. She blushed deeply, kissing Josh back. "I don't need to see that!" Riley shouted before Farkle kissed her. Riley giggled, kissing Farkle while Zay twirled Smackle around.

* * *

Come Friday, everyone was all packed except for Maya. Who just threw some stuff in her suitcase after school. "Really Maya?" Lucas asked when he opened her window to pick her up. "Oh hush that pretty little mouth of yours, Huckleberry!" Maya hissed at Lucas. "Ok." Lucas chuckled. He had just a backpack with him, while Maya had a roller bag and a giant purse. "Do you really need that much stuff for just a week?" Lucas wondered. "Yes I do Ranger Rick." Maya zipped up her roller bag. "Ok Short stack." Lucas resposed. Maya rolled her eyes. "It'll be easier to go out the front door." Lucas just followed Maya, locking the door behind them. "Do you need any help?" He asked her. "Nope, I've got this." Maya grinned.

Breana was already over at the Matthews with hers and Josh's things. Josh had to take the subway over from NYU since he had two exams today. Riley was all packed, just waiting for her friends. "Where are they?" She complained. "They'll be here." Breana reassured Riley, checking her phone. "Josh is on his was, he just got on the train so he'll be at the rental place in 20 minutes and here in 50." Riley nodded. "Are you going to be my aunt?" Breana blushed. "Me and Josh have only been dating since July." She giggled nervously. "Yeah, and it's now April. That's 10 months." Riley gushed. 

Breana looked at Riley. "We're still young, and before Josh I was engaged." Riley gasped. "To who?!?" She shrieked. Breana sighed. "Not so loud. His name was Marcus. We were dating for two years when he proposed on Christmas in 2015. We were dating for at least two years when he proposed, and we were engaged for five months when he died in the same explosion that took my legs and my hearing." Riley gasped again. "But your legs look so real."

Breana sighed again. "That's because my uncle has technology for androids like the ones in the terminator movies. He built my legs so that they would work with my body and look real and so that I would still be able to wear normal shoes and get pedicures." She explained. "That sounds really cool. But why did he make androids?" Riley asked. Breana looked Riley in the eyes. "Look, you can't tell anyone, but I'm one of the bionic superhumans. And yes, Josh knows. Kinda hard for him not to know when I have have super hearing and sometimes my heat vision glitches. Your grandparents don't know because I don't want to give them a heart attack."

"Do you have any other powers?" Riley asked, her nerdiness taking over. Breana pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yes, I have Energy Manipulation, Invisibility, Super Durability, and a few others. I can also speak just about any language in the world." She told Riley. "That's so cool!" Riley squealed. "Like I said earlier, you can't tell anyone." Breana reiterated. "I promise I won't." Riley whispered. "Good." Breana whispered back.

It was silent for a few minutes. "I've noticed your hearing aids before, but never said anything because I didn't want to be rude." Riley told Breana. Breana snorted. "How could anyone not notice them when they're pink?" She laughed. "Why are they pink if you don't want anyone to know?" Riley wondered. "Because of my sister." Breana chuckled before sighing. "You ran away then?" Riley frowned. Breana nodded. "I had to. There were too many memories and I needed time to grieve. I wasn't ready for another relationship, I'm still not, but your uncle helped me and he makes me laugh."

"Oh." Riley said, processing this new information. Breana smiled at Riley. "Let's stop talking about sappy stuff, Josh is going to be here with the van in half an hour, and I hear somebody at your window." Riley smiled back at Breana. "It's probably Farkle."

Riley was right, because seconds later Farkle himself popped into the living room carrying a small suitcase with a backpack on his back. "Maya is late as usual?" He asked Riley. "Yep. Lucas went to go get her on his way over here. We have to pick up Zay and Smackle. Josh should be here soon." Farkle plopped down on the couch.

Less than five minutes later, the doorbell rang. When Riley got the door, Josh was there with Lucas and Maya behind him. "I got the van and I found these." Josh referred to Lucas and Maya. "Does anyone else need to go to the bathroom first? Because I do." Breana announced. Everyone shook their heads. "You'll regret not trying to pee, but suit yourselves." Breana made her way to the bathroom.

Once Breana was back, they made their way to the rental van. "Ok, me and Josh are going to sit in the front, Maya and Lucas in the front of the middle, Zay and Smackle in the back of the middle, and Riley and Farkle in the way back." Breana instructed. Maya was about to say something, but Riley shushed her. "Listen to our aunt." Riley said before making some sort of weird face. Josh blushed. "Yeah, listen to my girlfriend, Moesha." He teased. "Only Eric get to call me that! And even then I still don't like it!" Maya protested. Breana giggled. Eric had taken to calling her Brenda. 

"Let's just go before we get in a traffic jam." Breana said. New York traffic jams were always the worst. They were even worse than the Los Angeles traffic jams she was used to. And California didn't even really have a subway system. 

They barely escaped rush hour after they picked up Zay and Smackle from Smackle's house, and soon they were on the highway out of New York.

* * *

 "What the fuck is this? Josh what did you do?" Breana asked, rubbing her eyes before putting her glasses on. "I was following the gps, it's still on!" Josh whined. "I didn't do anything else!" Breana rolled her eyes, everyone else but Farkle asleep. She and Josh didn't want Lucas and Zay to drive at night. "Then why did we just pass a farm?"

"Because we're in Tennessee." Farkle looked up from the book that he was reading by flashlight. "Then how did we get so far off the highway?" Breana asked Farkle. "Since Josh is using the gps that came with the car." Farkle rolled her eyes. "Well how was I supposed to know?!" Josh whined. "Because you're an idiot." Breana grinned, smacking Josh's shoulder. "Ow!" Josh whined again, smacking her shoulder back. Breana rolled her eyes. "That could not have possibly hurt. Pull over and let me drive." Josh listened, not wanting to be hit again. Especially with how she had broken this one guys' nose that was drunk and was going to beat up Josh a few months prior.

Breana reset the gps to see if it would help. But it still to ld her to continue on the same way. "Farkle, by any chance, and this is a weird question, but do you have one of your father's gps' with you?" Breana asked him. "I actually do." Farkle said, reaching by his feet for his backpack  and pulling it out. "Just plug it into the console."

Breana sighed in relief. "Thank you Farkle." She plugged the gps into a slot on the dashboard just as Josh pulled over so she can get in the driver's seat. She unbuckled and climbed over the center console once Josh got out of the car. Josh rolled his eyes. "You didn't have to do it the hard way." He chuckled. "Well the hard way is more fun." Breana grinned. "Oh really?" Josh winked at her, causing her to blush deeply. Josh chuckled, sitting next to her in the passenger seat.

Farkle rolled his eyes. "Don't be gross." Josh snorted. "Farkle babe, you have a girlfriend, and you two are going to be juniors soon. Junior year of high school is when everything changes." He chuckled. Breana saw Farkle blush in the rearview mirror. "Don't listen to the big dummy." She giggled. "Hey!" Josh whined, shoving her lightly. "Don't make me get into an accident!" Breana snapped at Josh, her heart pounding. Luckily she wasn't on the road yet.

Once the tension subsided, Josh fell asleep with his head against the window, followed by Farkle curling up to Riley after he read a few more chapters of his book.

Breana made sure to keep her eyes on the road. She wasn't tired yet because she had slept in, plus the extra caffeine she'd needlessly ingested and her bionics keeping her awake. But she didn't see the semi coming at the van from the left. She barely even saw the headlights as she blacked out while the metal crunched around them. She only thought of the kids, not herself. She was ok with dying. Josh could always find someone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Except for the first chapter, the titles are from songs by The Fray, with maybe a few exceptions later on.


	2. Heaven Forbid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The outcome of the car accident w/ the first load of Joshana angst.

Josh woke up to the sickening sound of metal crunching as his left arm was crushed. He didn’t know what was going on for a split second. “NOO!” He screamed, watched as Breana was thrust towards him on an angle. She was unconscious, blood seeping into her hair from a wound on her left temple. Josh reached to calm her down, though more for his sake than hers. He reached with his right hand to cup her cheek. I didn’t look like she had any injuries to her neck. That was the one good thing, if nothing else.

“Uncle Josh!” Riley screamed. “What happened?!? I can’t move my left foot.” Josh sighed. “A semi hit us.” “A semi?” Farkle slurred. He’d bumped his head on the roof of the van. Riley wrapped her arms around Farkle. Josh sighed. “Is Breana ok?” Riley wondered as Zay groaned. “I don’t know.” Josh sighed, running his right hand through his hair.

“Hehaw, you ok?” Maya asked Lucas. Lucas grunted. “I think so. Except  I can’t feel my hand. You?” He looked at Maya. “I’m just great.” Maya said, although she felt like she couldn’t breath. “Smackle?” Farkle wondered. Riley frowned. “Smackle? Are you ok?” She received no answer. “Zay, buddy?” Lucas asked, worried about him and Smackle. Zay grunted again as Farkle passed out. “Farkle!” Riley screamed. “He probably just has a concussion, Riley. He’ll be fine.” Josh tried to reassure her. After all, he was Pre-Med, and at most Farkle had a Grade II concussion if that. He could have just fainted and not passed out since Farkle was known to do that. Riley bit her lip, about to cry. “I hear the ambulance coming, Riley.” Josh told her, not wanting to see his niece or ‘niche’ cry for he would start crying himself.

Josh refused to get out of the van until Breana was safe. Well as safe as she could be with her injuries. By the time the firemen got her out, he was the only one still in the van. “Are you alright sir?” A female EMT asked him. He recognized her from seeing her around NYU doing stuff a few times. Which shouldn’t have been possible since they were in Tennessee. He was probably imagining things. “Besides my arm, yes.” Josh could see them putting Breana on oxygen in the distance. “Can I go with her?” He bit his lip. “I’m sorry but no. She needs a CT scan and probably surgery when she gets to Saint Thomas. Are you the guardian of the children?” The EMT asked Josh. Her name tag finally identified her as Joan. Josh nodded. “Riley’s my niece and Farkle, Maya, Lucas, Smackle and Zay are her friends. Breana is my girlfriend.” He informed Joan. Joan nodded. “The one boy, Riley said his name was Farkle, is still unconscious. The two other unconscious teens have already been taken to Saint Thomas. Farkle is being taken by himself as we speak, but you can go with Riley, Maya and Lucas.” She told Josh. Josh nodded. “We need our stuff from the car. I need to call my brother so he can call our parents. Our stuff would be fine since the van didn’t catch on fire.” Joan looked at Josh. “The police will have to bring the stuff to the hospital.” Josh sighed, running his good hand through his hair. Joan put a splint on Josh’s arm before directing him to the ambulance.

When Josh reached the ambulance, Riley immediately glomped him. She and Maya were sitting on the cot while Lucas was standing since he didn’t have an injured foot. He knew that they only reason while they were sharing an ambulance like that was the fact that they most likely close enough to the hospital, plus the sheer amount of people that had been in the accident. Riley had her left foot in a splint, and Lucas had one on his hand while Maya had oxygen cannulas in her nose. “Is Farkle ok?” Riley asked Josh. “I know he will be.” Josh told Riley, rubbing her back.

It must have not been a busy night for the hospital because as soon as they arrived there, Josh, Riley, Maya and Lucas were taken to the radiology section of the hospital. They suspected that Maya had some broken ribs. Josh just paced the waiting room until it was his turn to get x-rayed. He couldn’t even remember the small talk with the x-ray tech even if he tried to. Both his Radius and Ulna were broken halfway between his wrist and elbow. It wasn’t an open fracture so it was put in a splint and he would have to make an appointment with an orthopedic doctor because he would need surgery since there were bone fragments.

Josh didn’t try to find Riley’s emergency room cubicle. Instead, he ran to the ICU by following the signs hanging for the ceiling. “Excuse me, can you tell me anything about Breana Davenport?” He asked the nurse, panting from running. Luckily it wasn’t an asthma attack since he didn’t have his inhaler on him since it had been in his backpack. The nurse at the desk looked at him. “Are you family?” Of course she asked that question in her thick southern accent. “Fi- Boyfriend. Her family isn’t in the picture.” Josh tried to catch his breath. “She’s still in surgery. You should sit down, sir.” The nurse knew not to make a comment about how Josh almost said fiance.

Josh reluctantly sat down in one of the hard chairs in the ICU waiting room. He had the perfect plan to propose. He was going to ask her at the top of the Ferris Wheel at the Santa Cruz boardwalk. He loved her so much, even with the short time they had been dating, even with how broken she was. He wanted to fix her as much as he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'd been super duper busy with school, and applying to college is so fucking stressful I can't even- and I only started filling out applications, and finished 2- this past weekend.
> 
> My Great Uncle Charlie proposed to his wife at the top of the Ferris Wheel at Navy Pier, and I thought that it would be a good plan for Josh to have had. and before you ask, Lyndseybug, no hospital weddings.


	3. Be Still

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Surgery Outcome and First diagnosis.

Josh couldn’t take the waiting. It was agonizing, just watching the doctors and nurse watch past. And the sad, anxious, crying people waiting were the worst. He was just silent. He couldn’t even cry, that’s how bad it was. Breana wasn’t his Topanga, but she was definitely something. He bit his lip. The slowly ticking clock on the pale beige wall told him that he had been waiting for at least a few hours.

  
Josh saw a sight that he didn’t expect to see. “Topher?!” He wondered, surprised. The man in question looked tired, with disheveled hair and bags under his eyes. “Josh! Are you alright?” Topher immediately walked over to Josh. “I’m find except for my arm. Didn’t even need painkillers.” Josh bit his lip. “But Breana, she…” He trailed off. Great. He was about to start crying at the worst time to do so.

  
“She’s not alright, is she?” Topher took the empty chair next to Josh. “She’s been in surgery for what, four hours?” Josh sighed. “They won’t tell me what’s actually wrong with her, the semi hit the driver’s side and she was driving. She was already unconscious when I woke up from being asleep, and the EMT told me that she would need a CT scan and probably surgery when she arrived.” Topher nodded. “I came here for a conference, but this is where I did my residency so I may have enough pull. I’m from New York but I chose to do my residency here while my aunt was sick.”

  
Josh sighed in relief. “Thank you so much Topher. I owe you one.” Topher shook his head. “You would do the same thing if the situation was reversed.” With that, Topher disappeared into the bowels of the hospital. Josh waited for what seemed like another two hours but was really 30 minutes for Topher to come back. “Josh, this is Dr. Shepard.” Josh stood up, shaking her hand. “I’m Josh.” Dr. Shepard nodded. “It’s nice to meet you, though it would be better if things weren’t as serious. Could we take a walk?”

  
Josh followed Dr. Shepherd through the seemingly endless hallways, her auburn curls bouncing as she walked. “I know how hard this is for you.” Dr. Shepherd bagan. “My husband died because of a similar type of crash.” Josh swallowed, trying not to get into a panic attack. “But, her injuries aren’t as severe, though they are severe. She’s getting out of surgery here in a moment. Her first CT scan was clear, though she will have to have another one in about an hour or so. The internal bleeding is the most difficult but easy to treat. The rest of her body just has to heal. Her right arm is broken, but it was thankfully a clean break so it just needed to be set, though it will take 6-8 weeks to heal and then she’ll need to have physical therapy to help the muscles and then occupational therapy to learn how to do things again. She has quite a few broken ribs, so we set them internally with pins since an external splint would be harmful with the incision and everything else.” Dr. Shepherd sat Josh down in the doctor’s lounge. “Technically, you’re not supposed to be in here, but I won’t tell if you won’t. Would you like some coffee?”

  
“Black, please.” Josh nodded. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you with how crappy the coffee here is, but whatever floats your boat.” Dr. Shepherd handed him a mug with cats on it. “My husband loved cats, so I got stuck in this rut of buying mugs decorated with thum because we need to bring our own mugs to work.” She explained to Josh, sitting across from him. “I made you sit down because there’s something that I don’t know how you’ll react to.” Josh looked at Dr. Shepherd, preparing for the worst. “She’s pregnant, Mr. Matthews.” Josh practically dropped out of the chair. “W-what- what do you me?” He tried to practice deep breathing techniques. It didn’t entirely work, but at least he didn’t have an asthma attack or drop the mug.

  
Dr. Shepherd placed her hand on Josh’s shoulder. "During the surgery, one of my colleagues and I noticed that her uterus was swollen. A blood test confirmed our findings. I was planning to do a sonogram after the second CT scan, to give you some time to process things. But I could do it before if you would like.” She rubbed circles into Josh’s shoulder as he drank the particularly nasty coffee. “I would like if you did it before, I don’t know how soon my family is going to get here.” Dr. Shepherd gave Josh a small smile. “Let’s go do a sonogram.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Note for Dr. Shepherd think of Dr. April Kepner from Grey's Anatomy for the appearance. I don't watch it, just my mom does, but I looked at the wikipedia for actress information.


	4. Say When

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sonogram (Ultrasound) results.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh. Disclaimer I forgot to do in the last chapter: Topher is from Lyndseybug's story Jagged Little Pill. I asked her here and she gave me permission.

Josh had to suck in a breath as Dr. Shepherd walked him into Breana’s room. She was so pale, almost lifeless against the pale pink sheets. Her right arm was already casted, and there was a small bandage holding together a cut above her right eyebrow. Josh walked over to the side of the bed, stroking her hair. “Hey sweetheart. I’m here.” He whispered, reaching for her left hand. He was careful not to disturb the iv line in her arm. She was getting saline solution as well as blood.

Dr. Shepherd looked at Josh. “I will be right back with the portable ultrasound machine.” Josh nodded. “Okay.” He rubbed his thumb on Breana’s hand, hoping to comfort her while knowing that she wasn’t in a coma, she was just affected by the anesthesia. God, how did they end up like this?

Dr. Shepherd came back about five minutes later. “I will be her main doctor throughout her stay here, just so you are aware. Is there anything that I should know about, seeing as I don’t have her file?” She asked Josh, plugging in the machine before she washed her hands, proceeding to carefully lift up Breana’s hospital gown to expose her abdomen. The bandage covering the incision was on her upper abdomen, out of the way of where the gel would need to go. Josh guessed that she would just have another scar to add to the collection.

Josh sighed. “Well, she has PTSD. From what I know, I probably haven’t seen the worst of it.” He chewed on her lip. Dr. Shepard nodded. “Well PTSD is common in traumatic events, and she does have a lot of scar tissue on her body. I noticed a gunshot wound or two among them.” She squirted the gel on Breana’s lower abdomen before using the transducer to spread it around. Josh watched as the image appeared on the screen. Dr. Shepherd studied the screen.

“Mr. Matthews, do you see that human-like blob thing?” She asked Josh. Josh nodded. “I do.” Dr. Shepherd smiled. “That’s your baby.” She made a face, moving the transducer around in thought.

“Is something wrong?” Josh asked. Dr. Shepherd didn’t answer until a moment later. “Do you see that smaller thing that is a blob?” Josh nodded. “Is that-?” He didn’t finished his sentence. Dr. Shepherd nodded solemnly. “That is an empty sack, meaning that there originally was twins. Fraternal twins since they did not share a sack.” Josh sighed, looking at Dr. Shepherd. “Also, I see a lot of scar tissue in her uterus.” Dr. Shepherd remarked.

“What does that mean for the remaining baby?” Josh wondered. Dr. Shepherd sighed. “Well, I’m not entirely sure. Given the amount of scar tissue, I’m not sure how she was even able to get pregnant successfully. Since she is about 10 weeks along, and babies can still be miscarried until the middle of the second trimester, it’s going to be touch and go.” She looked into Josh’s eyes. Josh sighed. “Thank you.” He took one last look at the screen. “I can print out the sonogram for you.” Dr. Shepherd offered. “I would like that, thank you.” Josh whispered.

Dr. Shepherd placed the order in her computer. “I’m going to order some more iv fluids for her, and though her vitals are stable, with her condition I would like to do the second CT scan amd the MRI sooner rather than later. With the brain, changes can happen quickly, and it wouldn’t be good to miss anything.” Josh nodded, chewing on his lip again. “You know, I’m actually studying Pre-Med.” He tried to start some small talk to dissipate most of the grey cloud surrounding them. Dr. Shepherd gave Josh a small smile. “Do you have a specialization yet?” Josh returned her small smile. “I was thinking about pediatrics or obstetrics. Maybe neonatology.” He told Dr. Shepherd. “Why pediatrics? Especially considering how delicate neonatal cases are.” Dr. Shepherd wondered, wiping the gel off of Breana’s stomach.

“I was born three months premature, and I almost died because I got a respiratory infection. I still have asthma to show for it.” Josh told Dr. Shepherd. Dr. Shepherd nodded. “Everything happens for a reason.” She unlocked the wheels of the cot in order to take Breana for her MRI.“Yeah, I guess.” Josh said, running his right hand through his hair. “Oh, she has asthma too.” He said quickly. “I know. The first CT scan showed the scarring in her lungs.” Dr. Shepherd told Josh. “Do you know where to get her medical records from?” Josh shook his head. “To be honest, no. She was homeless when I found her. That’s how we ended up together, to be honest.” Josh chuckled a bit. “Everything happens in mysterious ways, doesn’t it.” Dr. Shepherd said. Josh shrugged. “I don’t know.” He sat down in one of the chairs. “I know I can’t go with to the scan.”

“I’ll try to be as quick as possible.” Dr. Shepherd said, disconnecting the bag of fluid and that bag of blood from the pump before wheeling Breana out. After Dr. Shepherd and Breana was down the hall, Topher came in. “I have your phone. I brought the rest of yours and everyone else’s stuff back to my hotel room for the time being.” He handed Josh his phone. “Thank you Topher.” Luckily, Josh was already adept to using his phone with one hand.

Topher noticed the look on Josh’s face “Where is she?” Josh looked at Topher. “Another CT scan.” Josh sighed. Topher took a seat next to Josh. “That’s good right, they’re just double checking to make sure that didn’t miss anything.” Topher offered. “Yeah but…” Josh trailed off. “There’s something else?” Topher guessed. Josh nodded. “She’s pregnant.”

“Oh.” Topher looked at Josh, surprised. “Is that all?” Josh shook his head. “Not even close.” Topher rested his hand on Josh’s arm. “I’m here for you if you need to talk.” He just sat there quiet, reaching for the tissues when he saw Josh’s face contort. “She might lose the baby.” Topher places the tissues on the side table, enveloping Josh in the most unmanly hug ever as he finally broke down. “She already lost one. There was two. It’s ten weeks, and there’s so much scar tissue in her uterus that it’s touch and go.” Josh sobbed. Topher rubbed his back, handing him a tissue.


	5. Enough For Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little more insight to the Josh/Breana relationship, RIley has a confrontation with Josh, Farkle's awake, and CT scan results.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All mistakes are mine considerings I wrote almost all of this chapter on the google docs app for iphone.
> 
> I'm sorry that Farkle being awake is only mentioned in passing, the next chapter will be at least part of the way Riley/Farkle bc babies. Well honestly Farkle is baby, Riley is an afterthought. But an interesting afterthought (DON'T KILL ME!!! my outside personality is Riley, my inside personality is Maya) and I love Riarkle although instead of ship-bashing, I bash the ship wars.

Though still crying, Josh began to check his phone. There were so many missed calls, but the majority of them were from Amy. He didn’t want her to worry more than she was probably already worried, but he just couldn’t talk to her right now. She still wasn’t entirely keen on him and Breana together, though she had made peace with it already, after all, he had taken her off the streets from the kindness of her heart. In all honesty, he needed time to process this.

Besides his mother, he had a few missed calls from Topanga as well. The voicemails progressed from wondering how he was to saying that she and Cory were worried about them all.

Dr. Shepherd quietly brought Breana back from getting an MRI and a CT scan, seeing Josh deep in thought. She went to talk to a college to double check the results of the scans before she told Josh. She wanted to be sure, but the pit in her stomach told her that double checking was useless.

Josh sighed. How was he supposed to tell his family what happened? Especially his mother. She was still warming up to Breana, after having been furious at Josh for bringing a complete stranger into their home. But when Josh saw her walking on the side of the road on his way home from the soup kitchen, and almost hit her with his car at that, he knew he couldn't just leave her there. She needed a place to stay, somewhere where she could slowly become herself again. Alan had been glad for more help at the family store, and it was almost like Morgan was living at home again. Key word being almost. Breana and Morgan could never be each other.

Josh made a face at his brain’s funny way of putting things. He then shook his head, glancing over at the hospital bed holding his heart before he looked up at the ceiling. “God, how could you- no, how could I have let this happen? I should have been driving- wait, no, that wouldn't have been fair to her. Fuck! I don't know anything anymore!” He screamed, disturbing the peace being the furthest thing from his mind.

Josh stopped berating himself when he heard the familiar clickety clack of crutches going at rapid speed on tile. Riley. It had to be her. She's the only one on crutches that would have reason to visit the room.

“Riley…” Josh whispered, fiercely fighting the urge to cry again. He pushed the other chair out farther so Riley would have more room.

“Uncle Josh.” Riley whispered, clumsily plopping down in the extra chair. Josh had to steady her before she fell.

Riley looked up at Josh. “Are you ok? Topher told me that she's pretty bad. They're trying to wake up Farkle now. You were right, he only has a concussion and some scrapes and bruises. Lucas is with Maya again the hospital’s will, Smackle is in surgery, and nobody has heard anything about Zay yet. I texted my dad. It's bad, isn't it Uncle Josh?” She rambled on, her eyes pleading with him to say that it wasn't that bad.

Josh couldn't lie to Riley. Even if lying would protect her innocence, nothing was ok. “Yeah, Riley, it's bad. I don't know what I would do if I lost her, but I also wouldn't put myself in her place because she's lost enough.”

Riley paused for a moment, chewing on her lip in thought as if Josh had just spoken gibberish. She took a deep breath before speaking. “Do you really love her Uncle Josh?” She stared at him with big brown doe eyes.

Riley’s intense stare almost made Josh uncomfortable. “Of course I love her. I'm the one who has been the first person to wake up with all her damn nightmares! Do you know how many times I've sang her to sleep, how many times I've stayed up with her, not because she couldn't sleep, but because she just didn't want to? I should have payed the consequences for transferring colleges late, and gone to Pennbrook this year instead so I could have spent more time with her.” Josh sighed. “I wanted to propose to her on this trip. Which the way I planned to do it was probably really cliche, and I'm going to do something else when- if I get to do it. I probably should have asked for the family engagement ring, but mom’s still not crazy about her. So I bought my own.”

Riley was still looking at Josh, wincing a bit from the force of his words. She opened her mouth to say something but closed it a second later.

osh sighed again. “I'm sorry, that was probably uncalled for. I didn't mean to yell at you.” He apologised to Riley.

Riley shook her head. “You have a lot of feelings right now, and it's getting harder for you to hold them all inside. This isn't some soap opera, as much as I love Degrassi and Red Planet Diaries.” She sighed. “Do you want to tell me what's wrong with her, or would it be too much for me?”

Josh nodded. “Her arm, is broken, as you can see. Some of her ribs were broken as well. She had to have surgery because of internal bleeding.” He sighed, not sure if he should tell Riley the part he was really worried about.

Riley looked at Josh. “There's something else, right? Something that you don't want to tell me either to protect me or you're afraid I’ll tell everyone. How bad is it, on a scale from one to ten?” She looked him up and down, and then briefly glanced at the hospital bed.

Josh was dumbfounded at how mature Riley sounded. Just last year she was forcing Maya to watch children's movies. Well she still did that, but she was 16 now. A lot could change in a year. He took a handful of deep breaths. “It’s a 10. Well, it's not a ‘she’s going to die’ 10 but rather a ‘holy shit what am I going to do’ 10. Excuse my language.” He chuckled a bit at the idea of apologising for his language. Because even though it was Riley, the idea of apologising for adult language when he was an adult, and had just spent a few months at a college full of adults, seemed utterly ridiculous.

Riley gave him a look, cocking her head to the side. She was confused by his laughter, even if it was only a chuckle, but she shook her head before looking at Josh normally again. “She's pregnant, isn't she? That's why you don't know what to do?” Riley wondered. If she had caught bits of her grandmothers conversations with her mother about the new houseguest at the Matthews residence in Pennsylvania, it didn't matter now.

Josh nodded, his stomach dropping when Riley said that topic out loud. “Yes, she is, kiddo. The baby is only ten weeks along, and its sibling already didn't make it past the embryo stage. The doctor is surprised that I managed to get her pregnant in the first place with how much scar tissue in her uterus.”

Riley frowned, sniffing a bit. “Poor little baby. I know what scars are, but is scar tissue? And what does that mean for her getting pregnant?” She asked Josh.

Josh slumped in his chair, emotionally and physically exhausted. “Scar tissue is when your body tries to heal itself, but it's not always a good thing depending on the injury. Scar tissue in her uterus means that it would be hard for her to keep a pregnancy or hard for the embryos to implant. She's had some pretty rough stuff happen to her, Riley. Not everyone’s life can be sunshine, sprinkles and rainbows.” If he sounded too harsh for Riley he didn't know, he was just trying to keep from breaking down again. Josh had been dating Breana for ten months, and even then he _still_ didn't know everything that had happened to her.

Riley whimpered a little. “I know, Uncle Josh. You know, Maya's my best friend.” She sighed.

Josh grunted. “She's had it worse than Maya, Riley! She has nightmares every other night, if not every night!” He just snapped. He didn't mean to, but the fact that Breana had been through that much upset him deeply, and also made her angry at the ones who hurt her. It wasn't Marcus’ fault that he had died, but everyone else that had hurt her only had themselves to blame.

“No, Maya doesn't have nightmares but she randomly cries sometimes. I’m just going to go check on Farkle.” Riley accepted her crutches from Josh and just left, the clicking of the crutches fading down the hallway.

Josh was seething, red hot anger coursing through his veins. He screamed at the top of his lungs, not wanting to hurt his other hand by punching something. He panted, trying to catch his breath as he collapsed to his knees in a mess of sobs.

Dr. Shepherd rushed in after having been in the hallway. She bent down next to Josh. “Are you alright?” She helped the lanky mess of a mid-sized man off the floor.

Josh hiccuped, trying to breathe even though it felt like no use to do so. “My niece came to visit.”

Dr. Shepherd nodded. “Did the conversation not go well?” She asked gently.

Josh shook his head. “She asked how she was, the conversation got heated after Riley guessed that Breana was pregnant. Riley is a lot more mature now but she still doesn't fully understand the real world.” He breathed a bit slower, his lungs on fire just like the ache in his heart.

Dr. Shepherd nodded, helping Josh sit in a chair. “I have some news.”

“Good or bad?” Joshed questioned, though he knew it was most likely bad.

Dr. Shepherd sighed. “It really depends on how you look at it.” She paused for a moment, trying to read Josh’s expression. “She has a blood clot. It's in prime vacinity to go to her lungs in about a day, two at most. It's about medium size. We can give her a blood thinner, like Heprin, to break up the clot, but since the baby already isn't doing to well, it could harm him or her. Since you are her boyfriend, and we don't have her parents or anything on hand, the direction of her care ultimately goes to you. The clot could break up on it's own, but it's very risky to leave it untreated with the state of her health, the size of the clot, and how there are less veins for the clot to go through with her legs having been previously amputated.” She tried to sound as professional as possible, though her voice wavered slightly.

Josh swallowed. How could ge be responsible for one human being, let alone two? “I understand. How long do I have to make a decision?” He avoided looking directly at Dr. Shepherd.

“About twelve hours, because the blood thinner would need time to work.” Dr. Shepherd told Josh. “I'll leave you alone to think.”

Josh nodded. “Thank you.”

Dr. Shepherd sighed. “Don’t thank me yet, honey.” She walked out of the room to go check on other patients.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My heart totally dropped while I was writing this. I was stuck on it for so long after the first two paragraphs, but then I had a sudden burst of inspiration last night and then had a solid three hours during school to write this because the program I get bused to is on spring break this week but my school is not. It's so annoying but it was worth it for this.
> 
> And update on my Boy Meets World watching- I should be finished with the whole series this week if not tonight.


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